The European Commission has accused the Belarusian government of tricking migrants and refugees with false promises of easy access to the European Union in what it called a “gangster-style” approach to a long-running migrant crisis.

Hundreds of migrants and refugees remained camped out in near-freezing temperatures in Belarus on Tuesday after Polish security forces blocked people from attempting to cross the border.

Poland has for months accused Belarus of trying to cause a major confrontation by encouraging migrants and refugees from the Middle East and Africa to cross into Central Europe and the wider European Union in revenge for Western sanctions on longtime President Alexander Lukashenko’s government.

On Monday, the situation escalated as hundreds of people headed towards the Polish border near Kuznica village. Some tried to breach a barbed-wire fence using spades and other tools.

Poland deployed additional soldiers, border guards and police, preventing refugees and migrants from forcing their way across the frontier.

Polish President Andrzej Duda on Tuesday accused Lukashenko’s government of “attacking” the border and the EU “in an unparalleled manner”.

“We currently have a camp of migrants who are blocked from the Belarusian side. There are about 1,000 people there, mostly young men. These are aggressive actions that we must repel, fulfilling our obligations as a member of the European Union,” he told reporters in Warsaw.

Later on Tuesday, a European Commission spokesperson said: “This is part of the inhuman and really gangster-style approach of the Lukashenko regime that he is lying to people, he is misusing people … and bringing them to Belarus under the false promise of having easy entry into the EU.”

Al Jazeera’s Rory Challands, reporting from the border, said “thousands” were camping in makeshift tents next to a barbed-wire fence.

“Humanitarian groups say they’re lacking food and medicine,” he added.

Minsk-Moscow discussions

For its part, Minsk said it was concerned by the Polish troop presence in the region, following a call between Lukashenko and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Moscow is an ally and creditor of Belarus, which is increasingly isolated after a brutal crackdown on dissent last year following a disputed election that handed Lukashenko a sixth term.